HEREFORDSHIRE bosses are deeply disappointed by proposed sharp cuts to Government money for the county, which they say will hit services.

Herefordshire Council’s cabinet member for finance Cllr Pete Stoddart said that under the Government’s plans, the county “will receive a disproportionately low share of national funding, despite facing service demands as complex, if not more so, than those of other councils”.

The county includes the town of Ross-on-Wye and local villages Goodrich, Symonds Yet West, Whitchurch, Garway, Welsh Newton, Llangrove, Llangarron and St Weonard's.

The Government’s Fair Funding review of local authority funding will lead to a gap in Herefordshire’s 2026/27 budget of around £27.3 million, or 11 per cent of its net budget.

But the council says it has already made millions of pounds of savings in recent years, by keeping a lid on spending while improving key services for residents.

The potential funding shortfall from next April will now require savings and efficiencies over twice those of previous years, Cllr Stoddart warned, adding that with funding settlements now covering multiple years, “this pressure could become more intense over the next three years”.

To deal with this, the county will need to continue to prioritise infrastructure, roads and opportunities for investment and skills to help attract growth, while prioritising services for the most vulnerable and delivering value for money, he said.

“Herefordshire could be penalised for its sound stewardship of public resources,” Cllr Stoddart added.

Herefordshire already faced the challenge of losing the £7 million Rural Services Delivery Grant, cut by the Government at the end of last year. The council says the current funding formula does not take into account the extra costs of delivering services across a sparsely populated, rural county.

The county also receives below-average amounts of council tax per household, despite having increased rates by the five per cent maximum in consecutive years.

The Government says its planned changes will fix the outdated way local authorities are funded to make it fairer and fit for the future.